Symbolic Meanings
by FlameAlchemist007
Summary: Sanada and Yukimura enjoying an afternoon together... doing manual labor. Sanada and Yanagi hanging out at night together... carrying out their secret plan. Yukimura shares his love for his teammates and friends through the concept of symbolism.


**Disclaimer: **I do not own Prince of Tennis or any of the characters related to it. They all belong to Konomi Takeshi.

**Rating: **K

**Author's Note:** I should have totally posted this on Sanada's birthday, but it didn't occur to me that it had came up so fast and past. (Happy Belated Birthday Mr. Tarundoru!). Anyway, the Alpha Pair does manual labor in the garden. Later in the week, Sanada and Yanagi sneak around at night. The Three Demons - I love them so. :) Mostly Sanada POV (one section of Yukimura POV).

A little Niou/Yagyuu and Yanagi/Kirihara sprinkled in a few spots.

As always, reviews are appreciated!

* * *

><p>"I want to get each regular a bouquet of flowers at the end of the tennis season," Yukimura announced as he reclined in one of the chairs outside by the garden. "What do you think, Sanada?"<p>

Sanada, who had been cloud-watching lost in thought, snapped immediately back to attention.

"Flowers?"

"You know, what you see right in front of you…" Yukimura teased and Sanada sighed softly out of slight embarrassment.

"Hmm… It's not a bad idea, but why?"

"Did you know that flowers have different kinds of meanings?" Yukimura inquired interestedly, picking up his drink and sipping it slowly.

"Actually I didn't. I just thought they were nice to look at."

"I should have known that aesthetics are not one of your particular strong points," Yukimura added endearingly, reaching over patting him on the head and seeing his face flush in a flustered kind of way. "You don't see symbolism in things - you just see them face-value. Concrete might be a way of saying it."

"It's just the way that I am," Sanada added, pulling his cap lower over his eyes as Yukimura chuckled.

"I love that about you, you know. I enjoy opening up your mind to other things."

"And taking me out of my comfort zone…"

"In more ways than one."

They sat in silence as they finished their drinks - ice lightly clinking against the side of the glass as the liquid dwindled away. The clouds were scarce and a bit wispy so they sun was able to beat down on them with its hot, bright rays.

"Ready to work, Sanada?"

"What are you going to have me do?" Sanada inquired politely as Yukimura stood up and started heading towards the shed.

"This," he said, thrusting a large shovel towards Sanada as he grabbed a smaller one for himself.

"What am I digging?" he questioned as Yukimura led the way to a patch of bare land.

"You're going to dig here and then add some fresh soil from the bags over there. I'm going to work on getting the flowers I want for our team members out of their spot int the garden and plant them here."

"… Why can't you leave them where they are?"

"I feel like creating something right now. And when they bloom to their fullest potential, I want to take a picture and frame it," Yukimura explained as he worked on tying an solid green apron on to keep his clothes from being soiled. "I cherish my team."

"And apparently symbolic value."

"Sanada," he scolded jokingly. "Have you been spending too much time with Yanagi lately? His influence is apparent in some of your speech."

"Just trying to be funny," Sanada muttered, slightly embarrassed. "And I don't want to wear an apron. It's getting to be quite hot out."

"Heat doesn't bother you. You just think you look silly in it," Yukimura pointed out as he started to head towards the first flower patch. "But you should take off your shirt at least."

"I'm not going to be that hot, Yukimura."

"I know. I just really like the shirt you are wearing and I would rather keep it from getting dirty," Yukimura added and Sanada face twisted into a strange incredulous expression - torn between protestation and fear for his well-being.

"Take it off Sanada or I'm forcing you to wear this butterfly-printed apron to tennis practice tomorrow."

"You wouldn't."

"Just this lovely, butterfly-printed apron without absolutely nothing else on."

He sighed and started pulling his shirt over his head, revealing his sculpted muscles to the sunlight. His slightly tan skin was already glistening with sweat, which meant that there would be no avoiding the dirt that was going to cling to his body. Sanada was almost certain that Yukimura secretly wanted to see his toned chest splattered with wet soil more than he wanted to protect one of his favorite shirts.

* * *

><p>Hours later, after the scorching sun had set, the two best friends declared their work to be finished and started cleaning up slowly. Sanada removed his hat and stretched his aching muscles as he welcomed the cool breeze that was just starting to whisper through the trees. Regardless of how he was feeling from all of the hard manual labor he had to do, he felt a great sense of accomplishment from the masterpiece that had been created from their combined efforts.<p>

"Thank you for your help today, Sanada," Yukimura said warmly as he switched on the garden lights from inside the shed. "It made things go much faster."

"Not a problem. I didn't have anything else to do today."

Yukimura hummed a content tune as he pulled out a hose and turned it on, dragging it over to the flowers.

"Don't you normally water with a watering can?"

"Yes, but it's late and this will get the job done quicker. I just need to give them a light shower."

"Okay, I'll just finish up cleaning up the tools," Sanada said, entering the shed and making sure that everything wasn't laying around haphazardly. As tired as they were, Yukimura would never forgive a sloppy mess.

A minute later, he came out and did a scan of the garden for anything they missed and saw his shirt resting on a small bench a few feet away from him. Before he was able to take a step towards it, a cold jet of liquid squared him in the back and he jumped out of alarm.

"Yukimura!" he yelled, annoyed as he turned around and was still being sprayed with the hose. All of the dirt and mud that had accumulated from earlier was being washed away, leaving behind cleaner skin that seemed to glisten from the ambient lights. "Stop it!"

"Stop what? The jet setting?" he inquired sweetly as he adjusted it to a a strong shower setting and aimed upwards towards his head, causing water to stream through his hair.

"This altogether!"

Instantly the water stopped, leaving a fuming Sanada soaking wet as he approached his innocent-looking captain.

"Like I said, I didn't want that shirt to get soiled, so I thought you needed a rinse before you put it on. Even though I did like your rugged look as you toiled away, I also how your moist body seems to sparkle in the light being cast upon your tan skin."

"Yukimura… A fair warning would have helped," Sanada said gruffly as he worked on smoothing out his hair. "And besides, my pants are wet now and I feel uncomfortable in them."

Yukimura grinned as he rolled up the hose before going into the shed and coming back out with a folded apron in his arms.

"There's always this you can wear home," he suggested brightly, extending his arms out in an offering.

"I'd rather be caught naked on the tennis court than wear that home."

"I wouldn't speak to impulsively, Sanada," Yukimura said with a harmless chuckle and Sanada smacked his forehead in stupidity.

"So… when do these flowers bloom to their fullest?"

"In a week and a half. Just in time for the team get-together."

"That quickly?" Sanada remarked as he shrugged on his shirt and straightened it. "Anyway, I'm sure everyone is going to like them."

"I do hope so."

"…"

"What is it, Sanada?"

"Which ones… are mine?"

Yukimura laughed softly as he pulled him away from the garden and towards the gate to the front yard.

"No no, Sanada," Yukimura reprimanded endearingly. "It's a secret. You have to wait to find out just like everyone else."

"Fine, I knew you were going to say that," Sanada admitted as he started to walk away, pulling on his cap over his damp hair. "I do have one last question."

"One more and then I must get some rest."

"Are there flowers for you in that patch?"

"No, I don't see the need to pick some for myself because I'm not going to be giving myself flowers at the end of the season."

"You're right. I didn't think before I asked."

"It's fine. Good night Sanada," he said, waving him off with a affectionate smile.

"Good night, Yukimura," Sanada repeated as he left with a array of thoughts on his mind. He wanted to know which one were his, but he had just made a silent promise to Yukimura to wait his turn. However, the more pressing thought on his mind was the fact that Yukimura was too humble - it wasn't the fact that Yukimura didn't want to give himself flowers, but rather that he didn't know what he would pick that would resemble his character. As he made the trek home, he started generating a plan to resolve the issue.

* * *

><p>"This is ridiculous, Genichirou!"<p>

"Shhh! It will be fine."

"What will Seiichi do to us if he catches us in his backyard after dark? Or even worse, if we ruin something in his garden?"

"The quicker you shut away that logical side of your brain telling you that this isn't a good idea, the quicker we get this done and out of here."

Silence.

"Okay, but I'm blaming you completely if he does get angry," Yanagi concluded in a hushed whisper and Sanada nodded in acceptance. He hoped he didn't sign up for a death wish for possibly bringing the balance of the garden out of order.

"It should be fine. You said he doesn't wake up at all during the night and we know he's a heavy sleeper."

"It was an educated guess based on his behavioral patterns," Yanagi stated as they approached the shed. "There's a slim chance that I am wrong."

"Tonight isn't going to be that night," Sanada reassured him as he took a look at the combination lock on the door. "…Shit!"

"What's wrong?"

"I've never seen this lock on the door before."

"It's because he always gets the tools and supplies."

"Oh right."

Yanagi rolled his eyes (or at least, Sanada thought he did). He never knew with the mysterious, unrevealing data master.

"The combination is 0521," he stated as Sanada moved the numbers into place and pulled. The lock clicked open and he froze.

"…Wait… How did you know?" Sanada asked, brain still reeling in shock.

"It's your birthday," Yanagi explained with a shrug. "You're his best friend that he is closer to than anybody. It was the only number that it could have been."

"…"

"You're so embarrassed right now, aren't you?"

"Shut up!"

Yanagi smirked and pushed past him to grab a few shovels and a flashlight. Sanada glared at him back as he did the same before heading out into the garden. Before Yanagi left the shed, he hit the switch to turn off all of the softly glowing garden lights, casting them into complete darkness. Two flashlights were switched on simultaneously and started scanning the area.

"There is one of them in this first patch."

"Ah, I see. Good choice. He'll like that one."

"And let's see…"

Another pause as Sanada pulled a small book out of his pocket and started thumbing through it. Since he wasn't well-versed with the meaning of flowers, let alone know what some of them even looked like, he had stopped by the bookstore and purchased one to make things easier. He had spent the better part of the evening figuring out exactly what he wanted, which meant that his homework remained unfinished for the first time in his life.

"Well, Genichirou," Yanagi said approvingly. "I see you've done your research. That makes things easier. Hopefully your parents and/or Seiichi don't scold you for leaving other things unfinished."

Sanada chose to ignore him as he located the next flower. He could hear the sound of a small shovel picking into the earth with a consistent rhythm as he brushed back a few leaves to admire the purple petals of the second flower.

"Where would you like to re-plant these?" Yanagi asked softly towards the source of the second flashlight.

"There's an empty spot -"

"'Over by the small water fountain'," Yanagi finished smartly. "Is what you were going to say. You're so predictable."

"Don't ask if you already knew!"

He could hear Yanagi chuckling and he scowled to himself.

"Relax. I'm just trying to make things more light-hearted."

"At my expense."

"Of course," he felt Yanagi whisper into his ear and he jumped slightly since he did not hear him approach. "Wouldn't have it any other way. Now where's the next flower, Mr. Romantic?"

"I'm not being romantic!" he retorted back, aggravated with a voice as sharp as daggers. "I'm just showing my admiration and my thanks for him, that's all."

"I know. Once again, another light-hearted joke misinterpreted by the guy with the shortest temper of the entire team."

Sanada stood up and walked over to the patch near the water fountain before squatting down with his flowers in hand and judging where to place them. It was wise for him to remove himself out of Yanagi's vicinity in case he couldn't fully suppress his urge to punch him.

"The flower you want is two rows down to your left. It has vibrant pink petals and should be next to some daffodils."

"I have an idea," Yanagi asked from where he was getting the third kind of flower after locating them quickly. "How about you give me the book and I'll find all of the flowers and work on getting quite a few of each? I think you've written down your guesses at where they are located so that makes it easier. That way you can stay by the water fountain and arrange these the way that you want."

"That is a good idea. It does make things quicker."

"Okay, then let's keep this rotation for a few more minutes until you have enough to work with."

"Hey Yanagi…"

"What is it, Genichirou?"

"Thank you for all of your help. I really do appreciate it."

"You're welcome, but I should be thanking you. I think this will be a very special gift for our best friend."

* * *

><p>'<em>For Marui, a bouquet of white gardenias, purple crocuses, and pink ranunculuses with a scattering of light purple asters and white baby's breaths. Perfect for the genius who is a radiant collection of joy and cheerfulness - someone who is always content with life and festive with his actions,'<em> Yukimura thought, half-asleep in his bed with a blanket covering his lithe frame. He was too content in his world of pleasant dreams to want to rise and start the day.

'_For Jackal, an arrangement of purple lisianthuses, dark pink camellias, and daisies backed with a hearty amount of bluebells and lily of the valley. Calm and gracious, Jackal is nothing short of humility or sweetness. He is also the most innocent one out of the group - never getting into trouble or causing any_,' Yukimura continued thinking as he forced himself to open his eyes and slowly blink in the sunlight streaming through the outside door.

'_For Niou, it would be appropriate to create a fairly monochromatic collection of deep indigo delphiniums and rich purple larkspurs coupled with lavender and violets. His beautiful spirit is full of boldness and he is a very observant and watchful individual. He pervades a sense of distrust of others and others definitely distrusted him to not pull a prank,'_ came Yukimura's next thought in an amused way. He sat up and climbed out of bed, stretching his arms slowly as he yawned.

'_For Yagyuu, a neat presentation of pastel blue hydrangeas, dark pink magnolias, and light purplish-blue hyacinths with white hibiscuses and calla lilies encircling them. Limitless perseverance, a noble and dignified personality, and true sincerity was who Yagyuu was. All of his actions for the benefit of others seem to have this delicate regal touch that showed the beauty of his soul,'_ Yukimura considered as he started to change out of his sleeping clothes and into some casual clothes to wear outdoors.

'_For Kirihara, a cluster of red amaryllises and orange freesias on one side and pink sweet peas and yellow and orange alstroemerias on the other side surrounding stargazer lilies in the middle. He has two distinct personalities - he can be spirited and dramatic or he can be shy with quiet aspiration, but he was always ambitious in what he did,'_ mused Yukimura as started shifting through his desk drawer for his camera. He had been looking forward to this day all week.

'_For Yanagi,_ _warm dark pink azaleas and orange-pink begonias would be the main flowers, but his bouquet would also have violet pansies, pink tulips, and white tuberoses. He has an abundance of deep thoughts and he finds success in whatever he does. He has loving thoughts for others that he hardly voices aloud and he takes pleasure in caring for his team through indiscreet means,'_ thought Yukimura gratefully as he opened the door to the garden and strode out towards the patch where all of these flowers currently were.

'_And lastly, for Sanada, daffodils would serve as the centerpiece, representing his chivalrous nature. Encompassing the center would be fiery orange-yellow gladioluses and bright orange and red nasturtiums symbolizing the power of the gladiators flowing through his veins, the need for conquest and victory in battle, and his pride in the strength of his character and the strength of his teammates,_' Yukimura mentally concluded as he reached his destination and looked at the area fondly, noting how healthy and fresh the flowers looked with the morning dew sparkling in the sunlight.

"Oh my, what's this?" Yukimura said to himself when he noticed there were some flowers that weren't there before residing between the patch and the water fountain. He tenderly stroked the petals of the white jasmine that were full of grace and elegance before moving onto the delicate beauty of the pink orchids. The purple irises, representing inspiration, and the sunflowers, representing adoration, were interspersed among peach colored roses in an arc behind them.

He smiled brightly as he straightened up and took a few paces back, turning on his camera and checking the focus through the viewfinder. His heart felt much lighter than usual - like it was floating on air as snapped a few pictures. Yukimura knew from the tone of Sanada's voice from his last visit that he was a bit upset at how Yukimura didn't have flowers in the team collection. Little did Sanada know that Yukimura purposely left some bare land in the patch, accurately predicting that Sanada was going to go fill it in with Yanagi's help. He was a bit curious to see Sanada's views on him as and he felt that this was the most efficient way to get an honest answer without putting Sanada on the spot.

'_What a beautiful morning,'_ Yukimura thought blissfully as he headed back inside to get ready to go to the store to develop the pictures. _'There is a lot to get ready before the team gathering tonight…'_

* * *

><p>The get-together at Yukimura's place had happened without any major problems or incidents. They had an amazing dinner prepared by Jackal, Yagyuu, and Sanada and finished with a bountiful amount of desserts baked and decorated by Marui and Kirihara. As they were eating, they enjoyed carefree conversation about the tennis season, school, past memories, personality quirks, and anything in-between. At one point, Kirihara accidentally got some of the cake's frosting on his nose somehow, and Yanagi ended up licking it off instead of using a napkin, causing him to turn a deadly shade of red as everyone else laughed.<p>

After they had teamed up to wash and dry the dishes, they went into the living room area to decide on playing some of the games that Yanagi had brought over. They all had a great time in heated competition, provoking each other to gain the upper hand and laughing at every embarrassing situation that occurred. The team gatherings were one of the few times that torturing Sanada and Yanagi didn't result in some kind of punishment and the team exploited this fact, but they got their fair share of torment back later back from the Three Demons.

A glance at the clock from Yanagi told the team that it was getting late and that it was time to go. Niou groaned from his spot on the couch where his head was resting on Yagyuu's lap - an obvious sign that he felt too comfortable to get up. Kirihara mocked him from his spot in Yanagi's arms in front of the TV, but was immediately quieted when Yanagi pressed one finger to his lips and chided him playfully. Marui and Jackal promptly turned off the video game console and started to put the controllers away neatly as they made fun of Kirihara being put in his place.

"A word, Sanada," Yukimura called out as the team started to head to the front door to depart for the night. "And you too, Yanagi."

They both nodded, stepping away from the hustle and bustle of their teammates putting on their shoes and picking up their belongings. Kirihara was balanced precariously on one leg as he was tying one of them, providing Niou the opportunity to accidentally bump into him, which caused him to topple over onto a hunched over Marui. Jackal sighed audibly as he pulled his bouquet of flowers out of harm's away and Yagyuu pushed up his glasses before shooting Niou a scornful gaze. Niou returned the gesture with a sly brush of his lips on Yagyuu's before he was forcefully shoved away in annoyance. They all bid their farewells to the Three Demons and thanked Yukimura again for their special, heartfelt gifts.

"So what is it that you wanted to talk to us about, Seiichi?" Yanagi inquired politely as he studied his flowers resting on a nearby table diligently.

"My little surprise in the garden," Yukimura answered as he straightened his own flowers in their vase. "I loved it."

"Just like how we all loved ours," Sanada said he looked at his own flowers nestled in his arms. "You're so thoughtful."

"My only regret was that I wasn't awake to hear your conversations in the garden as you worked. I have a faint inkling that they consisted of witty bickering and high-strung biting remarks because of your fear of me catching you in the middle of the night."

"Extremely accurate accusation you had there," Yanagi said in admiration. "We were afraid our lives were in jeopardy in the entire time."

"You all did an impeccable job. You didn't ruin any plants by accidentally stepping on them in the dark and you did put everything back in the shed where it belonged. Mission well-accomplished."

"Thank you for the compliment," Yanagi thanked and Yukimura beamed back before giving him a hug. "I knew the team was going to appreciate the framed picture of the garden and their bouquet of flowers. How could they not? So we needed to do the same for you."

"Yanagi, what would I do without you in my life?" Yukimura asked as they held each other firmly and then let go.

"Who knows? At least I know that you would be missing my dry humor and your team training strategies would be rather lackluster," Yanagi deduced seriously as he picked up his gift carefully. Yukimura laughed as Yanagi departed with a cheery wave of his hand and a tactful wink towards Sanada.

"Do you still need to talk to me?" Sanada asked, shifting the flowers in his arms to get ready for a one-armed hug if Yukimura wanted to give him one.

"Hold that thought," Yukimura answered, walking over to the coat closet and pulling out a small bouquet of flowers. "These are for you."

"… I already have a bouquet…" Sanada stated, extremely confused as Yukimura approached him and held them out with a sweet smile on his face and twinkling sapphire eyes looking at him deeply.

"I know, but this is your extra bonus," Yukimura explained as Sanada's free hand wrapped around the stems to accept it. "Because you deserve it."

"They are… They… smell nice," Sanada said awkwardly, searching for something sensical to say. He could feel the heat rising in his face and he hoped that it wasn't showing too badly.

"Do you know what these stand for?" Yukimura asked, taking a step closer and peering into his handsome dark brown eyes with his beautiful blue eyes and Sanada shook his head. "Lilacs and forget-me-nots. A message to my first love to remember me forever."

Sanada's heart fluttered when Yukimura put his hands on either side of his face to pull him close, pressing his lips to the side of his cheek, soft and graceful like transient flowers petals dancing in the wind.


End file.
